https://www.rte.ie/news/regional/2026/0904/1590386-carlo-acutis-donegal-school/ A Donegal Gaeltacht school has become the first in Ireland to be named after Saint Carlo Acutis, the first millennial saint, who was also known as 'God's Influencer'. Gort a' Choirce NS has added Saint Carlo Acutis to its name and will be known as Scoil Naomh Carlo Acutis. St Acutis, who died of leukaemia in 2006 aged 15, was known globally, for his efforts to spread the Catholic faith online and is the first saint of the millennial generation. A fan of computer games, Acutis, who was born in London in 1991 and grew up in Milan, taught himself several computer coding languages and built websites to spread his faith. He was canonised by Pope Leo XIV last September. Monsignor Anthony Figueiredo will bring his relics to Gort a' Choirce as part of a naming celebration this weekend. Bishop of the Raphoe Diocese, Niall Coll, will celebrate mass in his first official visit to Teach Pobail Chríost Rí in Gort a' Choirce on Sunday. In a message directed to the school children present, he is expected to tell the congregation that St Carlo Acutis used his computer skills to help others. Principal Patricia Uí hArlaigh said the school community decided the naming of would be "a lovely way" to honour St Carlo Acutis, known as the patron saint of the internet. "In a world, where everyone wants to be an influencer, I think it’s wonderful that he’s 'God’s Influencer’. I really believe this will have a big influence," she said. Ms Uí hArlaigh said the school followed his path to sainthood over the past 10 years. Carlo Acutis, who grew up in the northern Italian city of Milan, has been recognised by the Vatican as performing two miracles - a necessary step to sainthood. The first was the healing of a Brazilian child suffering from a rare pancreatic illness while the second was the recovery of a Costa Rican student seriously injured in an accident. In both cases, relatives had prayed for help from the teenager, who was beatified by Pope Francis in 2020. As his reputation for devotion grew, he was moved along the official path to sainthood, and his body was moved to Assisi in central Italy, where it is widely visited. Saint Carlo Acutis's canonisation ceremony last year was the first of Pope Leo’s pontificate.
